The Madre de Dios River, a major waterway from the Andean Mountains flowing east to Bolivia and Brazil, winds its way through the Manu lowlands fed by tributaries such as the Blanco River, site of the Manu BioStation. Along the Madre de Dios commercial properties exist. But once you forge forth on the many feeder rivers, the Amazon's backyard becomes unexplored territory enveloped with the mysteries of the jungle, a place were adrenaline is your morning cup of coffee.

Southeastern Peru, Manu Wilderness:
Though the Peruvian Amazon is only 10% of total area of Amazonia, it represents the wildest, most wildlife-packed rain forest in the world. The density and diversity of Amazonian animal and plant species reach global maxima in the extreme western Amazon, near the foot of the Andes.

Here the Alto Madre de Dios and the Manu rivers converge to form the Madre de Dios River near the jungle town of Boca Manu. Eastward on the Madre de Dios river brings one to the Amarakaeri Indian Reserve Zone and the private nature reserve of Manu Safaris, an area boasting the highest diversity of terrestrial life on the planet Earth.
Tributaries to the Madre de Dios such as the Blanco River offer the best opportunities for diverse wildlife viewing within a relatively small area. Within the boundaries of private conservation nature reserves that adjoin the Amarakaeri Indian Reserve Zone, Giant Otters live in the ox-bow lakes, monkeys and myriad of birds inhabit the area.